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Jennifer<br>
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I have not secured a certificate of presumed death in the probate context. However, I secured a judgment and order for the coroner of either King County and/ or Pima County, Arizona to issue one. I had a client whose husband was believed to have perished in the Arizona desert while after crossing the border from Mexico. He had not been seen for 8 years and she was unable to secure passports for her children, approve surgeries for her children, or do anything that required both parents. You must have a contested action (which you do), so I filed a divorce petition. In that action, we filed a motion for a declaratory judgment pursuant to 7.24. You must give notice to all interested parties. In our case we explained that we couldn’t give notice because we believed H was dead. We presented all our proof of why we believed H had perished in the desert. In our case, this included declarations by my client and 2 of H’s siblings, research from the internet showing the high risks associated with trying to cross the desert and statistics on deaths, unidentified remains, etc., and we provided a declaration of an organization that had assisted my client in searching at hospitals, jails, etc. right after he disappeared and then again at the one year point. I also did follow up contacts with the various coroner’s offices along the S.E. border to see if he had shown up.<br>
So, you would want to do a pretty vigorous search for the missing person, and submit that along with efforts by others to locate the person. Presumably, the conditions under which he disappeared would determine how vigorous your efforts might be. If everyone saw his ship go down in the Artic waters of Alaska, and they never found his body, 7 years later, less evidence is probably required.<br>
The trick is that Washington statute says that the coroner or medical examiner for the county in which the presumed deceased was last seen alive would issue the certificate. In our case, although he lived in King County prior to his death, and my client remained here, everyone knew he was last seen alive in the Arizona desert. So after getting our order, we had to approach the Pima County coroner. The Arizona statute says the county of residence issues the certificate. We eventually beat the certificate out of Pima County.<br>
You said the son was presumed to have died in Spain. So, possibly, you may have to get the certificate issued in Spain. When I was researching for my case, there was a case where the ship started out in Canadian waters but it was believed to have crossed into U.S. waters- or something like that. There was no question that the person had died but there was a jurisdictional question. So, you may run into some hitches.<br>
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andrekita<br>
Law Office of F. Andrekita Silva<br>
1325 Fourth Avenue, Suite 2000<br>
Seattle, Washington 98101<br>
206-224-8288<br>
www.seattle-silvalaw.com<br>
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Quoting Jennifer Mackley <<a href="mailto:jennifer.mackley@mackleylaw.com">jennifer.mackley@mackleylaw.com</a>>:</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">I am wondering if anyone has navigated the process of obtaining a death certificate under RCW 11.05A.050 (4) or (5) for a missing person. PC’s son has been missing for 12 years and is presumed to have died in Spain. His father died 4 years ago in King County and missing son’s small inheritance is now being held by the state. PC wants to claim it in son’s behalf in case his body is ever found, so she will be able to use the funds to bring him home. I would appreciate some direction on how to help her navigate the process. Thank you in advance.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Jennifer</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">RCW 11.05A.050 <i>(4) In the absence of prima facie evidence of death under subsection (2) or (3) of this section, the fact of death may be established by clear and convincing evidence, including circumstantial evidence.</i></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><i>(5) An individual whose death is not established under this section who is absent for a continuous period of seven years, during which he or she has not been heard from, and whose absence is not satisfactorily explained after diligent search or inquiry, is presumed to be dead. His or her death is presumed to have occurred at the end of the period unless there is sufficient evidence for determining that death occurred earlier.</i></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><b><span style="color:black">Jennifer Mackley</span></b> <span lang="DA" style="color:red">|</span> <span lang="DA" style="color:black">Mackley & Mackley, PLLC</span> <span lang="DA" style="color:red">|</span> <a href="mailto:(206)%C2%A0938-4969"><span style="text-decoration:none">(206) 938-4969</span></a> <span lang="DA" style="color:red">| <a href="http://www.mackleylaw.com">www.mackleylaw.com</a></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;color:#1F497D">SPECIAL NOTICE TO CLIENT(S): This email is directed to you, please DO NOT FORWARD to any other party or you could be waiving the attorney-client privilege.</span></p>
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<div><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size:11px;">andrekita<br>
Law Office of F. Andrekita Silva<br>
1325 Fourth Avenue, Suite 2000<br>
Seattle, Washington 98101<br>
206-224-8288<br>
www.seattle-silvalaw.com</span></span></div>
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